Emissions and Flaring Performance

We report greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from our oil and gas assets on both operated and equity bases. In addition, whereas our short term GHG emissions reduction targets utilize a market based approach to GHG accounting, we report operated GHG emissions on both a location and a market basis.

Our GHG emissions estimates include CO2, methane and nitrous oxide, which are reported in units of CO2e. In 2023, approximately 97% of Hess’ direct reported (Scope 1) operated GHG emissions are from stationary combustion sources such as flares, heaters, turbines and engines. The remaining 3% of our direct reported (Scope 1) operated GHG emissions are from a variety of noncombustion and fugitive emissions sources, such as storage tanks, compressor seals, pneumatic pumps and valves. We also report indirect emissions associated with purchased electricity (Scope 2) and other indirect (Scope 3) emissions.

See our Key Sustainability Metrics where we disclose our five year performance data for key climate change and energy metrics.

Operated Emissions (Scope 1 and 2)

In 2023, of the estimated 2.6 million tonnes of gross GHG emissions reported from our operated oil and gas assets, 2.1 million tonnes were Scope 1 emissions, primarily from flaring and fuel combustion, and approximately 0.5 million tonnes were Scope 2 emissions from purchased electricity. Process operations (primarily fuel combustion) accounted for 47% and flaring accounted for 31% of our combined Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions.

In 2023, our absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions decreased by 0.06 million tonnes compared with 2022, due primarily to a significant reduction in natural gas flaring (and the associated Scope 1 emissions) in North Dakota. These reductions were partially offset by an increase in our purchased electricity (Scope 2). The shift from direct Scope 1 emissions to indirect Scope 2 emissions, which we have been addressing through the purchase of RECs, is an intended outcome of our efforts to electrify field operations, including compressor engines used in midstream operations and drilling rigs used upstream.

Operated GHG Emissions Intensity

We have committed to reduce the GHG emissions intensity of our operated assets to 17 kilograms (kg) of CO2e per BOE by 2025 versus a 2017 baseline of 34 kg CO2e per BOE. This GHG reduction target utilizes a market based approach to GHG accounting, which allows the use of RECs to mitigate the environmental impact of Scope 2 GHG emissions.

On a market basis, our cumulative GHG emissions intensity through 2023 was 16.5 kg CO2e per BOE, a 51% reduction compared with our 2017 baseline of 34 kg CO2e per BOE, ahead of our 2025 target.

Methane Emissions

Reducing methane emissions, which represent around 7% of our operated Scope 1 GHG emissions, continues to be an important priority for Hess. Our major sources of methane, based on our regulatory emissions inventory estimates, are fugitive emissions from pneumatic devices, pumps, tanks, compressor seals, pipelines and the residual unburned methane associated with flaring. In 2022, we revised our emissions factors to also include methane slip from natural gas internal combustion engines.

In 2023, our total Scope 1 and 2 methane emissions were approximately 6,200 tonnes, which equates to approximately 155,000 tonnes of CO2e (assuming a Global Warming Potential of 25). This represents a 9% reduction from 2022 and a 35% reduction from 2017.

In support of our short term climate strategy, we established a 2025 global methane intensity target of 0.19% versus a 2017 baseline of 0.43%, using natural gas sales as a denominator. Our 2023 intensity based on this methodology was 0.13%, below our 2025 target.

We attribute these results to a combination of our continued efforts to reduce methane emissions, which include increasing natural gas capture, reducing flaring and continuing our leak detection and repair (LDAR) program in our North Dakota operations, and fully implementing our LDAR program in our North Malay Basin operations.

Flaring

Flaring from our operated assets fell to 23.4 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD) in 2023, a decrease of 14% from 2022 and of 55% from 2020. Our 2023 flaring intensity was 62 standard cubic feet per BOE compared with 79 in 2022.

Flare reduction is a primary driver for achieving our 2025 GHG emissions intensity target, our commitment to zero routine flaring by the end of 2025 and our net zero emissions by 2050 commitment.

In line with our endorsement of the World Bank’s Zero Routine Flaring Initiative, our reporting on our commitment to achieve zero routine flaring from our operated assets by the end of 2025 is guided by the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership (GGFR). The commitment applies to associated gas flaring from oil production operations. Hess has elected, however, to apply the GGFR definitions across all our operations, including our gas production operations in North Malay Basin and midstream facilities in North Dakota.

In 2023, approximately 19% of our total flaring was routine, all of which was limited to our North Dakota operations. No routine flaring occurred at our offshore facilities in the Gulf of Mexico or North Malay Basin. Our routine flaring totaled 3.2 MMSCFD, a 58% reduction from 2022.